Addressing the Realities of Commercial Sexual Exploitation, Substance Use, & Justice Involvement in Boston: A Massachusetts Trial Court Response

Justice involvement, substance use disorder, and commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) are inextricably linked. In Boston, the Dee Kennedy Project (DKP), an initiative of the Massachusetts Trial Court, works to help justice-involved adults find supportive pathways to exit CSE. The DKP provides a variety of services—through peer advocates/recovery coaches who work to help referrals achieve short and long-term goals at their own pace, whether it be related to safety, exiting, access to social services, or to the referral’s justice-involvement.

Attendees will form a basic understanding of the intersection of CSE, justice involvement, and substance use, who is impacted, and the barriers this stigmatized population face in the courts and community.  Included in this will be the tactics exploiters use to keep others caught up in exploitation and the system, and the barriers victim-survivors face when attempting to exit.

This program is online only and will be recorded. Anyone who registers will receive a link to the video recording.

Panelists:

Sheila Casey, Specialty Courts Director

Hon. Lisa Ann Grant, Associate Justice, Roxbury BMC

Sandra Andrade, Senior Peer Advocate, DKP

Katie Bryce, Project Coordinator, DKP

Tasha Thomas, Peer Advocate, DKP